Playing God
by chusang
Summary: Oh, love. It wasn't exactly what Itachi was looking for at age 24, but his mother thought differently. It didn't appear time was on his side, either. Non-massacre
1. First Encounter

**Disclaimer: **I don't own Naruto.

**Summary: **Oh, _love_. It wasn't exactly what Itachi was looking for at age 24, but his mother thought differently. It didn't appear time was on his side, either.

**Additional Notes: **This all happens a bit after Naruto: Shippuden, around 2 years or so. This is also a non-massacre fic, meaning the Uchiha Clan Massacre didn't happen and Sasuke didn't go rogue. Itachi is still alive and well, living in the Hidden Leaf Village!

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C1 Playing God

* * *

A few kilometers from the famous Leaf village, a part of the small group named Team Kakashi leaped through the lone woods. Feet came down hard on the branches of the trees surrounding them. It was fall and so the trees didn't give them much cover, but that didn't matter. It wasn't like they were running from someone.

''_No! _It wasn't on purpose, I swear! Sakura!'' A shinobi clad entirely in orange pushed some more chakra in his feet, hoping to go faster than his teammate. Although, it didn't seem to work. The shinobi that trailed him was named Sakura. A now famous medic-nin, trained under Tsunade of the Leaf: A renowned medic-nin who was known throughout the shinobi world. Even villagers knew her, not only for her skills, but also for her _awful _gambling habit. Her pupil, Sakura, had been training under her for quite a while now and had built up a reputation of her own. But then again, who _wouldn't_ notice a girl with bright pink hair?

Still trailing him, she yelled. ''I'll knock you out! What were you thinking, Naruto? You can't just walk into the ladies room!'' Sakura jumped even faster now, being reminded of it. _Just a few more metres_, she thought.

Naruto yelled once Sakura grabbed his vest and knocked him on his head, _hard_. Not only were Tsunade and Sakura known for their healing skills, but also for their inhuman strength. Both could destroy mountains or rip trees out of the ground. Naruto could handle pain, but he rather not have Sakura punch him.

Sakura and Naruto's team leader was probably still at the inn, reading his dirty novels _Come Come Paradise. _It was a habit he had and almost everyone knew about it. Sakura didn't care about it anymore; she didn't approve, but she stopped saying anything about it. It seemed their other teammate Sai had also developed an interest in them. Clearly, not feeling emotion didn't have _anything _to do with that. And, it wasn't like he was actually buying them and reading them himself, he just peeked over Kakashi's shoulder sometimes. He was most likely painting, that was both his skill and hobby. Those skills were why Danzō had preferred him over some other ANBU members.

Team Kakashi actually had another teammate, two really. One of them had been Yamato, or Tenzō as Kakashi liked to call him; they had been working together when they were both in ANBU, though Kakashi quit early. Yamato remained an ANBU. But he really was just a substitute for Kakashi, as he was out for a while after a nasty experience with an Akatsuki member named Deidara. He had been forced to use his Mangekyō Sharingan and it took its toll on him.

The other teammate was named Sasuke. He had been a part of their team since they were twelve years old and Kakashi was still their teacher. However, he had joined the Leaf Police Force approximately a year ago, following up his father as he was an inspiration for him. He really looked up to him. His older brother didn't join the force, instead he was an ANBU captain. Itachi had always been a prodigy, having graduated at the age of seven. He was also able to activate his Sharingan at age eight. Seeing as Sasuke was twelve, Itachi was around eighteen when his younger brother graduated. He was around 24 now, Sasuke being eighteen just like Sakura and Naruto.

Naruto could finally breathe as Sakura let go of him and started walking back, leaving Naruto with a black eye.

* * *

Team Kakashi could finally see a glimpse of the entrance of the Hidden Leaf and jumped to the ground as to prevent being attacked by some of the Leaf's shinobi on duty. All pushing some chakra in their feet, they ran in direction of the gate. When they arrived there, Izumo and Kotetsu both sat there, bored. ''Ah, finally back, huh?'' Kotetsu said with a monotone voice. He signed them in to report that they were back.

''Yeah.'' Kakashi said, same voice as his colleague. In one hand, of course, he had is dirty novel. Nobody really understood why he read them in public, though they had never asked either. ''We're going to hand in the file for the Hokage. I'll see you in the bar, Kotetsu, Izumo.'' The latter grunted in agree. Team Kakashi walked through the village, greeting a few people on the way.

''Hey, Forehead! How did it go?'' Ino ran up to Sakura when she saw her in the corner of her eye. Ino had been Sakura's best friend since forever, but they showed their affection a little odd, most found. Naruto never really understood it and neither did Sai, but most could understand the latter.

''It went okay. I've got to report to the Hokage, though. I'll see you at Ichiraku, okay?'' Sakura answered. Ichiraku Ramen was Naruto's favourite place in the Leaf, so when team Kakashi got back from a mission, they all went to Ichiraku together. Sometimes Sasuke was there too, though it appeared he and Sai weren't really friends. It was funny to Sakura; the boys looked a lot like each other, both in looks and showing emotions. Sasuke was _annoyed_ most of the time Sai was near and that's subtly said. Sai was definitely learning, but he didn't really understand it just yet.

Sai had been trained under Danzō, along with his brother Shin. The training was brutal; in the end, they were instructed to kill the other. It was either kill or be killed. The whole training had been hard on Sai and Sai had learned to supress his emotions. Those were qualifications for being a Root member.

When they arrived at the Hokage tower, they walked up the stairs to see Shizune standing around the corner. She was holding Tonton in her arms. It was obvious she was waiting, if not for them then for someone else. She appeared to be anxious about something, though the members of team Kakashi didn't know what. ''Hey, Shizune!'' Sakura greeted her colleague with a smile.

''Ah! You're back? That's great!'' Shizune answered. ''You can't go in yet, Tsunade is in a meeting with some ANBU. '' she continued. Shizune was Tsunade's niece and a fellow medic-nin. Although Sakura was well known for her abilities, Shizune was more advanced in healing. It was only natural since she had been Tsunade's pupil since forever. Sakura had an advance because of her chakra control and some situations asked for those skills. ''Although, Sakura,'' she continued, ''you should go in. Lady Hokage is waiting for you. They need your assistance.''

''That's okay, we'll wait.'' Kakashi said kindly. Although he wore a mask, you could see him smiling. Kakashi leaned against the wall, patiently waiting.

Sakura hurried to Tsunade's office and quickly opened the door. The scene she stumbled upon was definitely not for the weak-stomached. An ANBU member was lying on Tsunade's desk, clutching his hands to his stomach. It appeared to be Itachi, Sasuke's older brother. A good friend of his, Shisui, was looking at him with a worried look on his face. Shisui was also a clan member and they had been friends for a long time.

Sakura ran up to the desk Itachi was laying on. She had never really spoken to him. Only when she was there with Naruto to visit or pick up Sasuke. Even then it was just a simple conversation. Sakura cleared her mind. ''What happened?'' she asked both her mentor and Itachi's teammate, since Itachi was unlikely to answer her.

''An enemy shinobi might have attacked him with a strange jutsu or something. I didn't see it happening.'' Shisui answered her curtly.

''What village?'' Sakura asked him. She sent some healing chakra to the palms of her hand, that now had a green glow on them. Maybe if she knew what village the shinobi were from, she could figure out what was hurting and heal it. The pink-haired kunoichi was really trying, but she couldn't really find the effects of an enemy jutsu. She could, however, detect blood clots. It wasn't a lot, but it could definitely be dangerous*. Concentrating more on those areas, she managed to reduce it a bit. It _had _to be some kind of disease; Sakura made a mental note to read some books on it.

''Maybe it was Sound, I can't recall. They disappeared quickly.'' Shisui answered Sakura's question. It hadn't been that much of hard mission for the two of them. It was an important scroll they had to deliver.

In the meanwhile, Tsunade had been concentrating on his head where blood had collected itself. Itachi probably hit his head after or before he was hit with the jutsu. It probably wasn't an enemy jutsu he had been hit by. He was most likely sick, his teammate just didn't know it.

The blonde Hokage who appeared to be around 30 (which she really wasn't, by the way) grabbed a cloth and dipped it into a bowl of water standing next to her. She cleaned his now healed wound and undid it of any blood, instantly giving him a healthier look. The bags under his eyes didn't really help either. Sakura couldn't do anything else for him, as he just needed to rest for a bit. She withdrew the chakra from her palms.

''He still has a fever, so I'll get some help for him to be moved to the hospital.'' Tsunade said after taking his temperature. Itachi still had beads of sweat on his face and his neck, though he also seemed to be shivering of the cold. ''Shisui, you'll go with Itachi. You need a check-up too.'' the Hokage continued. She then turned to her pupil, who had been patiently waiting for her assignment. ''Sakura, I want to talk to you for a minute when those guys are gone.''

* * *

''So, was there any residue of an enemy jutsu?'' Tsunade asked Sakura when they were alone.

''No, I couldn't find any, lady Hokage.'' Sakura answered her, seeing her mentor narrow her eyes at her reply. Seems like she had been expecting something else, just like Sakura herself. ''I could, however, discover some blood clots. I managed to reduce it a bit, but I couldn't entirely stop it. It seems he has some kind of illness.'' she said.

Tsunade pondered for a minute, trying to think of something. ''I might know something. Get some books out of the library later, Sakura.'' she said after a while. The blonde didn't know the prodigy had such problems. He never came to her with an illness before, not like this. Blood clots were a really serious problem. She was going to look into the Uchiha file; it could be hereditary. ''Oh and Sakura, will you please send your teammates in? I want you to go to Mikoto to inform her that Itachi's in the hospital, since you're already here.''

''Okay, lady Hokage.'' Sakura answered her politely. Tsunade had been her mentor for years now, but she was still the Hokage; the strongest kunoichi in the Leaf. And though she's a bit old (don't say that to her face, though), nobody _dared_ to make fun of her.

* * *

Sakura was walking through the village again. She was exhausted since she just returned from a mission _and _lost some chakra to Itachi. She hadn't had any time to rest after she returned from the mission. They wanted to be back before sundown.

The kunoichi saw the walls of the Uchiha district coming into view. Above the entrance hang the Uchiha clan symbol; a fan. She walked faster. It'd been some time since she saw Sasuke last, but it was surely less than a month. They had both been busy. Team Kakashi was doing a lot of missions lately, while Sasuke just had a lot on his mind due to his duties to the police force.

When Sakura stood on the porch of the clan head's house, which was also Sasuke and Itachi's, she knocked on the door. It was silent for a couple of seconds, but after a while the door finally opened. Sakura came to face Sasuke, who had a bored look on his face. ''Sakura?'' he asked, confused. ''I thought we were going to meet at Ichiraku in a few hours.'' he continued.

''Change of plans. Can I speak to Mikoto, please?'' Sakura asked kindly. Sasuke seemed to be even more confused now. What did she want with his mother?

''Yeah, okay. I'll go get her.'' he turned around, walking away. ''Oh, you may come in you know.'' he continued while walking to the kitchen with a slow pace. Sakura walked in and closed the door behind her. She had been there a few times already. She decided to wait for a while instead of walking further into the house. After a while, Sasuke came back with Mikoto. Sasuke still walking in his own pace, while Mikoto hurried to greet Sakura.

''Oh, Sakura! How nice to see you!'' Mikoto said excited. ''What did you come here for?'' she asked Sakura kindly. She suspected nothing and Sakura felt bad. She didn't really know anything about what Itachi had yet, still she had to tell her such news.

Sakura began to tell what happened.

* * *

**A/N: **I have little medical knowledge! I am going to look some things up for this part of the story, as it is of importance.

So, I felt like writing this story. It was a lot easier than the first one, that's for sure. Please leave a review! Also, if you notice a mistake, please PM me or tell me in any other way, I'll try to correct it as soon as possible. If you want to know about the updates, be sure to follow me or my story. That's all!


	2. Second Encounter

**Disclaimer: **I don't own Naruto.

**Summary: **Oh, _love_. It wasn't exactly what Itachi was looking for at age 24, but his mother thought differently. It didn't appear time was on his side, either.

* * *

C2

* * *

Sakura had convinced both Sasuke and Mikoto that they could visit Itachi the next day, since he was still asleep because of his fever. Now, she was walking to Ichiraku with Sasuke. Sakura had actually planned on going straight home after telling them the news, but Sasuke had convinced her otherwise. It really didn't surprise her that he appeared to be cool about it. He was worried, really. He just didn't show it.

The sun had already begun to set as they walked through the village. She wondered if Naruto and the rest were there already. Their meeting wouldn't take as long as Sakura and Tsunade's had. It was a silent walk to Ichiraku as nobody dared to speak. Sakura wondered if Sasuke was thinking of Itachi. It was only natural, right? After a while, he broke the silence. ''So, how did your mission go?'' he asked by lack of a better question.

''Oh, you know. It went okay.'' Sakura answered him briefly. It wasn't that she didn't want to talk to him. In fact; she wondered whether or not he was okay. She _knew _Itachi was a role model for him. But, she couldn't just say ''it's going to be okay'', because she didn't know that herself yet. Tomorrow she would examine him to know exactly what was wrong with him.

When they finally arrived, half of team Kakashi was already there waiting for them. ''Sakura!'' Naruto started, ''And Sasuke? Are you two finally hooking up?'' he said bluntly with a huge grin on his face. He was clearly not seeing that the kunoichi's face started to get red. Not of shame, of course.

'_'Idiot_! You know, I don't think Hinata's father will be happy when he hears you're dating his daughter.'' Sakura said while punching him on his head for the second time that day. Sasuke just ignored their argument and went to sit next to his best friend, Naruto. ''Hey,'' Sakura started, ''where is Kakashi?'' she asked the boys of her team.

''He went home.'' Sai said with a fake smile on his face. He didn't ask what happened at the Hokage tower. Instead, he went back to eating his ramen. It made Sakura wonder, why did Kakashi go straight home? Usually, he would go with them to Ichiraku. But Sakura waved the worries away, he was probably just tired.

''I'm leaving.'' Sakura said. Naruto looked up at her from his seat.

''What? Already? Why?'' he managed to say in one breath, not caring about the food that had previously been in his mouth was now all over the bar.

''I'm tired,'' Sakura started and yawned, ''I'm going by Ino and then I'll going straight home.'' It was true she was tired. She just wanted to go home. But if she didn't stop by Ino first, she'd get pissed as hell. Sakura didn't want _that_ either. Like Shikamaru would say, it would be too _troublesome_. ''See you.'' she said before walking away.

Just like that, Sakura was walking through the Leaf again. This time alone. She was wondering if Ino was still working in the shop at this hour, because she hadn't seen her at Ichiraku. So, she decided to stop by. Sakura walked over the wobbly path that led through the Leaf. She could already see the flower shop Ino's family owned. Ino herself helped out a lot. Sakura reached the shop and looked at the open/close sign on the door. It said the store was open, so Sakura looked through the windows. There she saw her best friend leaning over the counter, kissing the boy before her. It was Chōji.

_Finally_, Sakura thought and decided to walk further. Ino had been crushing on him for a while now and she finally did something with it. Sakura herself didn't have crush. Hell, she didn't even have the time for that! Sakura had been busy at the hospital for a while now and it didn't look promising for the next few years. But she would manage. Sakura believed she would settle down, _eventually_. Now, her mind wasn't set on it.

Sakura decided to just go home and just read some books on how to treat her new patient. She didn't really know anything yet about his particular condition, so she would just have to look at what she did know about it since earlier that day and look things up. When she reached her apartment, she opened the front door and walked in. Time to _finally _rest from her mission.

The pink-haired kunoichi kicked off her sandals and walked to the kitchen with a slow pace. She could really use some tea after a long day. With that thought, she warmed up some water in a kettle. That kettle was really old and Sakura _knew _she had to buy a new one. But she always had the same excuse for everything. She was _busy_. While she was waiting, she walked over to her small living room. There was a couch and a table, but also a large bookcase. She adored the thing.

She stood on her toes, leaning against the bookcase to get a book of the highest shelf. She could only just reach it without it falling upon her head. She laid down the book on her couch and sat down next to it so she could read it. Flipping to the corresponding pages, she began reading.

After a while, while sunken into thought, something stirred her up. The whistling sound of the kettle rang in her ears, both annoying and alarming her. She sighed in relief and put her book away while standing up. She walked to the kitchen and poured the water into a cup.

This was going to be a long night.

* * *

''_Ugh_.'' Sakura moaned and lazily opened her eyes. While she saw waking up, she heard birds chirping. She wasn't one to get happy and excited about life when she heard those _birds _chirping. She'd get downright annoyed. Sakura quickly sat up, as it was the only way for her to completely wake up. If she would lie down for a few minutes more, she'd fall asleep again.

She turned off the alarm clock beside her bed, mildly said. She'd have to buy a new one later that day. Sakura stood up and walked to the shower sluggishly in order to fully wake up and get ready. Pulling of clothes as she walked, she stepped into the shower and turned it on.

When she was fully clothed minutes later, she stepped out of her bathroom and walked to the kitchen to continue her morning routine. First, there was the tea. While the water was slowly getting heated up, she put on her forehead protector. But instead of actually wearing it over her forehead, she put it over her hair like she used to wear Ino's ribbon. After that, Sakura made a small sandwich for herself. At that time, her tea was done too. Sakura really needed that routine, or otherwise things could get messy. She'd drink the tea first and then eat the sandwich on the way to the hospital.

Stepping out of her apartment with a sandwich in her mouth, she locked the door and walked down the stairs. The morning sun greeted her as she wandered through the Hidden Leaf. Because she couldn't talk to Ino yesterday, Sakura decided to stop by now. She didn't know if the shop was open yet, probably not. It was worth a try, right?

When she reached the shop, she glanced inside. The lights were out, nobody was there. _Too bad_, Sakura thought. Maybe she'd run into her at the hospital. Although Ino herself was a student of Tsunade, she didn't really work much at the hospital. She was more involved with the pharmacies.

In the meanwhile, Sakura had finished her sandwich and was now walking into the hospital, where smell of antibiotics dominated. She walked up to the front desk, where a nurse sat. ''Good morning, Shizuka. Do you know where lady Tsunade is?'' Sakura asked calmly.

''Ah, I believe she's in room 210. She said a while ago she was going to check up on mister Uchiha.'' The nurse named Shizuka said. Sakura hadn't known her very long, as she just worked here. Shizuka was a very nice girl, though.

''Okay, thank you, Shizuka.'' Sakura said with a smile. ''I'll be going there, then. See you.'' she greeted. Walking through the hallway, she greeted a few more of her co-workers. Sakura refused to use the elevator, as she was _perfectly fine_, she always said. She took big steps while on the staircase and got there within moments. When she stood before the room, she checked the chart next to the door. Then, she knocked on the door.

''A moment, please.'' a voice said, probably Tsunade's. Sakura waited for a minute. After a while, Tsunade called again. ''You can come in now.''

Sakura pushed open the door and stepped foot into the hospital room. Tsunade was leaning against the window behind the bed. In the bed lay Itachi Uchiha, coughing loudly. Sakura immediately frowned in worry and closed the door behind her. Tsunade handed the ANBU captain a glass of water, which he gladly drunk.

''Ah, Sakura. I already expected you. Have you read the books I told you about?'' she asked the young kunoichi. It seemed Tsunade had already done a check-up, as she was there already.

Itachi didn't look very sick; instead, he looked like he always did. But that could be misleading; he had always been pale and the bags under his eyes were nothing new either. Sakura walked closer to the bed in which Itachi lay. ''I have, master. I'll need to examine him, though. Although, I might know what's wrong.'' Sakura replied to her mentor.

''Enlighten me.'' Tsunade responded.

''Oh, well, I think the problem has to do with his lungs. As I discovered yesterday, there was some blood in both his lungs and some veins.'' Sakura stated, ''Judging by the information I obtained and the blood on his hand from just now, it might be a pulmonary embolism*.'' While she told both Itachi and Tsunade this, the latter nodded her head in agreement.

''I think you might be right.'' she said. Itachi had been silent the whole time Sakura had been there, not counting the sound the coughing earlier had made. ''Itachi, how long has this been going on? Tsunade asked him.

Itachi spoke, ''A while now, lady Tsunade. Maybe a few years, or so.'' he said calmly. ''At first, it was just coughing, so I thought was just sick. It stopped though. But then my chest starting aching from time to time. I didn't think much of it, until now.'' Tsunade narrowed her eyes at his statements.

''We'll have to see what we can do about it, then. It can be easily treated, but if this happens repeatedly, the consequences can be big; even if we do operate.'' the sannin said.

He narrowed his eyes and looked down. ''I see.''

Like Tsunade said, the consequences could be big if it happened repeatedly; it'd mean a lot for his shinobi career; or lack thereof, better said. ''Sakura, I'll leave this to you. I have to check on some other patients. Come see me later when you're done.'' Tsunade said to her pupil and left the room.

''How are you feeling, Itachi?'' Sakura asked the shinobi in the bed before her, walking closer to it. ''Please lay down.'' she continued. Itachi did as she said while answering her.

''I'm alright, Sakura.'' said kunoichi hovered her hands above his chest, sending some healing chakra to her palms. As she discovered yesterday, there were some blood clots in his veins, though there weren't much. They weren't big either, but they were still there. As she had read yesterday, most blood clots form in the area of the upper leg. With that thought, she moved her hands to the shinobi's legs. There she discovered some more, but like the others; they weren't fatal; _yet_.

''We'll see about that.'' Sakura said worriedly, as she moved her hands back. Her left hand was now hovering over his forehead. His fever had lessened, but didn't completely disappear. Using her medical skills, she managed to reduce the fever a bit. Sakura knew it had to do with the pulmonary embolism she was talking about earlier; she couldn't do much about it with just chakra. The kunoichi stopped sending chakra to her palms and let her hands drop to her side.

''You're going to have to drink a lot of water, since that fever is keeping up. Also, you'll need to stay here for a while. People can visit you, though. Your mother's very worried. I'm expecting her here soon.'' She said with an encouraging smile. ''I'll prescribe you some medicine and take the prescription to the pharmacy. I'll take my leave now'' the kunoichi continued.

''Thank you.'' Sakura heard Itachi say as she walked to the door.

''Don't thank me just yet.'' She said in response, turning around to answer him. Sakura opened the door and walked out, going to Tsunade's office.

* * *

**A/N: **Here's another chapter, guys!

I got the information on pulmonary embolisms from Wikipedia. I can't give you the exact website where I got it though; it's written in Dutch.

Translating medical things is a pain in the ass, I'll tell you that. And, like last time, please leave a review in order for me to improve both my English and my writing! I'll try to correct any mistakes as soon as possible. If you want to know about the updates, be sure to follow me or my story.

I also want to thank everyone who read both the first and this chapter. Plus, I want to thank the people who left a review; they helped me a lot. I've corrected the mistakes I made in the previous chapter.

That's all! Stay tuned for the next chapter.


	3. Third and Fourth Encounter

**Disclaimer: **I don't own Naruto.

**Summary: **Oh, _love_. It wasn't exactly what Itachi was looking for at age 24, but his mother thought differently. It didn't appear time was on his side, either.

**Additional Notes: **Sorry this chapter took a little longer than the previous! It's been such a busy week I was getting sick of it – literally. But, I shouldn't be making excuses. On with the chapter!

* * *

C3

* * *

''So, you're suggesting a deep vein thrombosis detached?'' Tsunade asked the young student with a serious look on her face. She could already have expected this – yet, it still came as a shock. Itachi was so _young_. But, of course, it could happen to anyone.

''Yes, lady Tsunade.'' Sakura started, ''It seems the detached thrombosis detached and travelled its way to his lungs, causing a pulmonary embolism.'' She herself wasn't sure what caused it – it surely wasn't obesity or pregnancy (him being a boy and all), so what was it? She made a mental note to ask him what may have caused this.

Tsunade furrowed her brows and Sakura was sure she was thinking the same thing. ''I'll look into his record later. For now, concentrate on other patients for a while.'' she said.

''Yes, lady Tsunade.'' Sakura said with a monotone voice. ''I'll take my leave, then.'' she said, walking to the exit of Tsunade's office. The pink-haired girl closed the door behind her as she walked to the stairs, descending them. She would go see the patients, but first she'd go by Itachi's room to check on him.

Sakura could've expected this, as it was visiting hour. When she stood before the patient's room, she heard voices from inside. Out of politeness, she decided to knock on the door before entering. When she came in, she was again greeted by a loud noise of coughing. It seemed Itachi was almost coughing up his longs as Mikoto patted his back, handing him a glass of water. She looked at him with a worried expression.

''Everything alright?'' Sakura asked after Itachi had calmed down. She walked towards them, kindly smiling. Sakura still wondered what had triggered it. The sickness and all. Maybe something _did _happen on his mission with Shisui. It could be something different, of course. She didn't know what yet.

While Itachi was silently drinking the water his mother had given him, Mikoto decided to answer the young medic. ''He's been coughing on and off for a while now. Do you have any idea what's wrong with him?'' She asked worriedly.

''I may have one.'' Sakura answered. ''I need to check something first, though.'' she continued, looking at Itachi. His eyes were all watery because of the coughing earlier. Sakura actually felt bad for him, as he was so young and she didn't know what the outcome of this was going to be. ''Can I take a look at your legs please?'' she asked the ANBU captain.

''Sure.'' he said, a bit confused. Why did she want to take a look at his legs? He rolled down the sheets to his ankles and saw Sakura frowning. That made him look, too.

''Your legs are all red.'' she mumbled to herself. ''Do they hurt?'' she asked, a little louder this time. Itachi didn't really like where this conversation was going. He had never expected this to be actually serious, truthfully.

''A bit.'' he said, frowning. His mother didn't really like this, either.

''We don't know it for certain yet, but it's most likely a thrombosis. A deep vein thrombosis, actually. It's seems like it has detached, and moved its way to his lungs. There, it formed a pulmonary embolism.'' She said, frowning just like both of the Uchiha. ''It's not very serious yet. However, if we don't do anything, it will be.'' she looked up, glancing both a look. Itachi had narrowed his eyes while Sakura was talking, looking down at his hands that lay in his lap.

''Mrs Uchiha,'' Sakura began, startling Mikoto. ''has this ever happened before? With another family member, I mean?'' Mikoto looked down, thinking hard. Then, after a while, she looked at Sakura again.

''I don't think so,'' she started, frowning. ''it may have, but I'll have to ask Fugaku later.''

''That's okay, I'll check with the register later. It may be hereditary. '' Sakura said. Then, she looked at the clock. It was almost time for her break. Before that, she had to check on some other patients too. ''If we find out more, we'll contact you both immediately. I'm going to check on some other patients, now.''

* * *

The pink-haired kunoichi closed the door behind her as she walked out of the young ANBU captain's room. For now, she was going to have to focus on some other patients, as Tsunade was looking into Itachi's record. Sakura wandered to a room a couple of meters further. She took a look at the chart next to the door and read the name.

A while ago, a young man had been brought in, about sixteen years old. After a mission gone wrong, he broke his leg, along with a few other bones in his body. If everything was okay now, he could leave in a few hours.

Walking inside, Sakura had a smile on his face as she saw the shinobi talking to his younger brother rather loudly. ''So then I punched him in the stomach, and he flew meters away'' he said while his brother looked at him, sparkles in his eyes. He seemed to really enjoy the story, his mouth being opened in admiration.

Sakura walked up to the bed. ''So, you got him good, huh?'' she asked him, grinning. Both he and his brother then turned their heads around, seeing Sakura beside the bed.

The boy laughed and scratched his neck. ''Yeah.'' he said, sheepishly. Shizuo, he was called. Shizuo had been in the hospital for two weeks now.

''So, how are things going?'' Sakura asked Shizuo, who still had a smile on his face. When he came in, Sakura immediately liked him. He had the same goofy smile as Naruto, also not giving up on anything. Giving a thumbs up, he answered her.

''Everything's going fine. So when am I going home?'' he asked, as he and his brother looked at the medic with a questioning expression.

''Well, I need to check a few things and then you can go.'' Sakura smiled at both of them.

* * *

''Ah,'' the kunoichi sighed in relief when it was finally time for her break. She stepped out of the hospital, wandering once again among the houses of the Leaf. Sakura had decided she could just as well drop off the prescription at the pharmacy while she was taking her break. But first, she would get lunch.

While on her way to Ichiraku, she saw Sai and Naruto on their way to the ramen shop as well. Naruto talking endlessly while Sai just went along with it, faking a smile. He sometimes nodded or shook his head in response, but never really opening his mouth. That is, until he saw Sakura coming into view. ''Ah, Ugly.'' he greeted.

_That smile makes it even worse_, Sakura thought to herself. ''Hello Sai, Naruto. I thought you were training?'' she asked them both, though she knew what Naruto was going to say anyway.

''Time for a break! So, are you on your way to Ichiraku as well?'' the blonde asked in return, grinning. Sakura nodded as they all walked to said place together. It wasn't very busy at this hour, as it was already passed lunchtime.

''Ah, Naruto!'' Teuchi greeted. ''Oh, Sakura and Sai, too! Time for lunch, I reckon?'' he always seemed happy when Naruto walked in. But it wasn't only then, he always had a smile on his face. That was probably the thing that made his costumers happy too. His daughter, however, thought he went a little overboard with it. So, she liked to punch him.

''It's always time for ramen, Teuchi!'' Naruto said excitedly. With that, they all sat down next to each other. There wasn't much space, but there was enough.

* * *

With a full stomach, Sakura entered the pharmacy Ino sometimes worked at. She hoped she was there, as she hadn't had the time to talk to her lately. Sakura had been gone for quite a while, so she really felt the need to talk to her best friend.

Although they don't seem very friendly to one another, they've been friends for a long time. When Sakura was still very young, around the age of 4, they both met. With Sakura constantly being bullied because of her forehead, Ino gave Sakura the confidence she needed in the form of a ribbon. But when they both had a crush on Sasuke Uchiha, their friendship changed into more of a rivalry. It didn't matter as they still saw each other as best friends, or sisters.

''Ah, Forehead! There you are.'' Ino said, walking around the counter to meet Sakura. ''Where were you yesterday?'' Not waiting for Sakura's answer, she continued. ''I _have _to tell you something! Chōji and I kissed!'' Ino exclaimed a wide smile on her face and both hands on the pink-haired kunoichi's shoulders.

''That's great, Ino!'' Sakura said in response, not mentioning she knew it already. ''So, are you guys dating now?'' she decided to ask.

''Yeah, totally!'' Ino answered.

''Finally,'' Sakura sighed. ''it really was time for such a thing to happen, you know. I thought you'd be more persistent about it. You _never_ let something, or some_one_, linger.'' She said with a smile, too. ''_But_,'' she started. ''I'm here because I have a prescription. I need some medicine for a patient. If possible by tomorrow?''

''Oh, sure. Let me take a look.'' Ino said and took the prescription from Sakura's hands. Walking to the counter, she read the piece of paper. ''Coagulation inhibitors, huh? I'll look for some. Wait a sec'.''

''Sure,'' Sakura said. A few minutes passed and she was still waiting for Ino to return. She looked on the clock hanging over door to the stockroom. It had been around five minutes now. Finally, the blonde returned.

''There weren't any in the stockroom, but I'll have them for you by tomorrow.'' Ino said.

''Okay, Pig. I'll see you later, then.'' Sakura said and waved when she walked out of the pharmacy. Walking back to the hospital again, she took another route then earlier. _I hope he'll make it 'till tomorrow_, Sakura thought. It wasn't that serious yet, but it could get painful for Itachi without some medicine. Even that wouldn't completely heal him, naturally. He probably needed to go into surgery, as this wasn't going to heal itself. Of course, Sakura could actually try to take out the blood in his lungs the same way she had done with Sasori's poison, she realised.

Arriving at the hospital, Sakura once again walked through the doors and entered a space coloured in white. The smell of cleaning products overwhelmed her. After such a long time, it didn't even bother her anymore. She was completely used to it. Sakura still preferred the scent of nature or home more, though. It was only natural.

Sakura decided to go to Tsunade first, so that they could check Itachi's records together. That way, they could maybe see whether or not it would return after a simple surgery or healing session. Walking up the stairs towards her mentor's office, she was greeted by Tsunade before she even reached the place.

''Sakura! I've looked into Itachi Uchiha's records. It seems he didn't inherit it. However, a while ago he had surgery in the area of his stomach. That may be the cause.'' Tsunade told her pupil. ''I think we need to treat him now, Sakura, as this is both the fastest and safest method.''

''O-oh, okay.'' Sakura muttered, a little overwhelmed by Tsunade's sudden appearance. They both walked towards the stairs and descended them, walking to Itachi's room. Tsunade knocked before entering and then walked in. Mikoto was still there.

''Ah, Itachi, Mikoto.'' Sakura's mentor greeted them both, ''It seems we've stumbled upon the cause of this pulmonary embolism.'' At that, Mikoto seemed happy they had finally found the source. But then the second part came.

''We think it's best to act now.''

* * *

**A/N: **Reviews make my heart all tingly, so thank you for them~!

I feel as if I get smarter every time I write more chapters on this story, haha! All that medical stuff; I'm not even good at biology.

So, like always, please review in order for me to improve both my English and writing skills. If you notice some errors, please don't hesitate to point them out to me. I'll correct them as soon as possible!

See you at the next chapter!


	4. The Experiment

**Disclaimer: **I don't own Naruto.

**Summary: **Oh, _love_. It wasn't exactly what Itachi was looking for at age 24, but his mother thought differently. It didn't appear time was on his side, either.

**Additional Notes: **There is a time skip in this chapter! Not right away, but there's a notice when it starts. It isn't really a big one, either.

* * *

C4

* * *

Mikoto Uchiha looked at both of the medic-nin standing before her. She was kind of shocked at the news. They wanted to act _now_? What did that mean? She had actually been hoping medicine could help him, but now that they said _that_, did it mean he had to go into surgery? ''Wha-what are you saying?'' she asked both of the doctors, ''Surgery?''

Then, Sakura interfered. ''Well, I may have found a solution to that. I'm not saying it'll work, but it's worth a try.'' she said with a friendly smile.

It was soundless for a while, until Itachi broke the silence. ''Let's do it.'' he said, neutral expression on his face. Sakura couldn't really guess what he was thinking, but she didn't think he was even scared at all. She knew he was brave, of course, being such a well-known ninja and having graduated so early.

''Okay!'' the pink-haired kunoichi said. She was happy she could do this. This way of handling things such as embolisms could actually make things a lot easier. ''Let's start right away, then.'' She told Itachi. Sakura then turned to Mikoto.

''I'm sure this won't take long. Do you want to wait outside, ma'am?'' she asked her, and she saw Mikoto nodding to that.

A few minutes later, Sakura was preparing everything for the following procedure. She already fetched a few bowls of water, having placed them beside her on a mobile table. Sakura tied up her hair, and spoke to her teacher, Tsunade. ''I need some people to help Itachi down, lady Tsunade, as this is a delicate procedure. I can't have him moving.''

''I'll get you a few people.'' Tsunade answered her pupil, then turning away to – probably – get a few shinobi.

Sakura then turned to her patient, Itachi, again. ''With this method, I can get most of the blood out of your lungs. I won't be a very pleasant feeling, so I'll have to put you under general anaesthesia.'' She saw Itachi nod and Sakura walked over to a countertop with a small sink in it. She reached up to a cabinet hanging over it. There, she grabbed a needle and walked back to Itachi. On her way, she reached into her pouch to get the anaesthesia and put it in the needle.

''I'm sure it won't take long, you'll be on your feet and out of bed in no-time.'' Sakura told him with an encouraging smile, ''_But_,'' she continued. ''This doesn't mean it's permanent. It could still come back, so we'll have to check up on you every once in a while.''

''I know,'' Itachi said.

''Okay,'' Sakura said, ''I'll put you under anaesthesia, now.'' She pressed the needle down into his arm slowly. In a few minutes, Tsunade would come back and Sakura could start the procedure.

When Tsunade finally returned with some shinobi, Itachi was completely unconscious. Sakura actually thought he looked peaceful, as he normally had serious but clearly tired look on his face. ''Okay. Please stand around the bed, everyone.'' Sakura told the shinobi. Tsunade had brought four shinobi, on each side of the bed stood two of them. Sakura didn't really know them well, though she'd seen some of them a few times. ''I need you all to hold him down for me when it's needed. I've put him in a coma, but this is just to be sure. Last time, things didn't really go well the first time either.''

Everyone did as she said, holding Itachi to the bed. Not really firmly yet, but Sakura wasn't sure it was needed anyway. ''I'll start now,'' she said. Holding her hand above one of the tiles of water, it formed a sphere under her hand. Moving it above one of his lungs, she inserted chakra into it as to get the blood out of the lungs. But it didn't go without a struggle. As soon as the sphere touched his chest and Sakura inserted chakra, Itachi started to struggle. It really was a good thing Tsunade had found the shinobi, or she wouldn't be able to go on with it.

Sakura went on with the procedure and pushed the watery sphere into his chest, getting it to his lungs. From there on out, she drew the misplaced blood out with her chakra. She absorbed them in the ball and pulled it out. The sphere that was once transparent, was now filled with a few little drops of blood. Meanwhile, little drops of sweat had formed on Sakura's abnormally large forehead. She moved the sphere to a bowl and released it.

''Well,'' she mumbled to herself, ''that was one. Now the other.'' Sakura wiped her forehead with a cloth and took a deep breath. The medic-nin moved her hands above the tile again, forming a sphere of water once again, starting the procedure for the other lung.

* * *

Sakura sighed as she closed the door of Itachi's room behind her. The hall was really silent; normally, she heard some visitors or nurses talking. She also couldn't see Mikoto anywhere. _She might be in the waiting room_, Sakura thought to herself. With that thought, she walked a few meters further; walking down the stairs. There, she saw Mikoto. Indeed waiting for news to arrive.

Mikoto was a very sweet woman. Although Sakura didn't see her much, she could really see how much she cares for her boys. Mikoto was clearly the housewife or the household, too. Always taking care when Sasuke, Itachi or Fugaku was sick. Fugaku, instead, was a really strict man; always watching over both Itachi and Sasuke's training. He was always making sure they were doing all they can; that made him a good father at some point.

''Mrs Uchiha,'' Sakura greeted her, ''the procedure went well. There were no complications.'' she continued with an encouraging smile on her face. The kunoichi walked further towards the bench Mikoto sat on. ''Itachi's still asleep because of the anaesthesia, but he'll wake up soon. You can visit him, if you want?''

When Sakura spoke, Mikoto had immediately looked up to see the young kunoichi standing there. ''I'd like that,'' Mikoto said with a smile on her face. Although her son was a true prodigy and could save himself from a lot of dangers, she often found herself worrying about him. But she realised earlier, he couldn't be any safer than here; Itachi had found himself in a place with the most renowned medics in the entire shinobi world. Mikoto trusted Sakura to do the best she could.

* * *

_((TIME SKIP))_

''So, how are you feeling, Itachi?'' Sakura asked the patient before her. Itachi lay on the bed before her as Sakura examined him, checking if embolisms were forming again. It'd been a week or two since the kunoichi experimented the new technique on Itachi. He had gone home after, as there were no complications at all.

''I'm feeling alright, Sakura.'' Itachi answered her, ''I haven't been coughing as much as I did before, luckily.'' he added. _He looks better, too_, Sakura thought. She thought it was great the technique worked, everything would be a lot easier. Why hadn't she come up with it earlier?

''That's great, Itachi.'' Sakura said, hands still shining with the green glow of chakra. She hadn't found anything. It could be one-off thing. The medic certainly hoped it was. ''Well, I've got good news, Itachi.'' Sakura said, looking up at Itachi. She had stopped the chakra supply and so her hands weren't glowing anymore. ''I haven't found anything that could result in more embolisms.'' Sakura said with a bright smile. Although she'd been healing patients – from a broken leg to an internal haemorrhage – for a while now, Sakura always felt good when she made someone feel better again.

Even though Itachi didn't _clearly_ show it, he was clearly happy with the outcome of the examination. He looked away from Sakura and a small smile formed. His trance was broken soon, though, when the kunoichi continued. ''However, this doesn't mean it can't come back. We'll have to check in a week or two again.'' Her expression had changed from a cheerful smile to an encouraging one.

''Thank you, Sakura.'' Itachi looked back at her, eyes meeting.

When Sakura walked out of the hospital a few hours later that day, she sighed in relief. It seemed she was doing that more and more these days. It'd been so exhaustive, working at the hospital for so many hours a week. With every patient she had to use her chakra and it was tiring her terribly. Don't get it wrong, though. Sakura really liked helping people and all, but it was slowly taking its toll. Luckily, she had tomorrow off. Sakura was planning on working on her taijutsu.

''Ah, Sakura!'' when said kunoichi heard a voice yelling her name, she turned around to see Mikoto walking up to her, waving her arms around. The pink-haired kunoichi stood still and Mikoto reached her. ''Sakura, honey, how are you doing?'' she asked her, clearly interested.

''I'm fine, Mrs-'' Sakura was cut off by Mikoto, who had nothing but good intentions.

''That's good to hear, child!'' she said in response, ''I just wanted to thank you again for taking care of Itachi. Fugaku and I are really thankful for that.'' Meanwhile, Mikoto had grabbed both of Sakura's hands while talking. ''What do you think of dinner at our place, tonight?'' she asked the kunoichi.

That certainly knocked the kunoichi off her feet. ''A-ah, well... Sure, why not?'' Sakura muttered a bit overwhelmed.

''Perfect!'' Mikoto said, ''I'll see you at seven!'' She smiled. Then, she waved and walked away, leaving a stunned Sakura in the middle of a marketplace.

* * *

**A/N: **I'm sorry if this story comes off as ''slow'' to you, but I intent to make it more of a realistic, as far as that's possible with Naruto. However, that means I have to time things realistic, if that makes sense, haha. Also, do you guys think it's too _medical_? I feel like I'm looking up too much, making the story boring. If so, please let me know.

Also, a while ago I dicovered a cosplay group called_ Fighting Dreamers Productions_. I've been absolutely in _love _with them! They've got really good cosplays, plus they're funny, too! I suggest you check them out if you have the time.

I hope you've enjoyed my story so far! Same goes for every chapter. If you notice any mistakes, please let me know!


	5. Growing Awkwardness

**Disclaimer: **I don't own Naruto.

**Summary: **Oh, _love_. It wasn't exactly what Itachi was looking for at age 24, but his mother thought differently. It didn't appear time was on his side, either.

* * *

C5

* * *

Sakura fell down to her already bruised knees, coughing and panting. She only had just a little bit of chakra left and it was leaving her breathless. Sakura had been on the training grounds for a while now. Her original plans were to train, but in the end she was just relieving some stress while punching things.

The training ground she looked upon was wrecked entirely. For a few years now, Sakura hadn't been allowed to train her taijutsu on the normal training grounds anymore. Instead, both she and her mentor trained further away from _humans_ in general. Sometimes outside the walls, too. That was so they didn't scare people away or cause any major earthquakes. They didn't have to look out so much, either.

With the little chakra she had left, Sakura decided to take a soldier pill instead of letting her small wounds heal by themselves. She had a dinner to go to and the nerves in her belly made her stomach _twist_. It was ridiculous, really, Sakura thought. It was just a dinner, she kept telling herself. _But it's with the Uchihas_.

That was the reason Sakura changed her training to more of a _psychological_ session.

The pink-haired kunoichi didn't feel like she deserved the preparation and effort she knew Mikoto was putting into this. Sakura was flattered, really. She was also really happy she was able to help both Mikoto and Itachi, the rest of the family, too. But, she was a _doctor_. Helping and saving people was her everyday work.

Sakura pushed herself up from the ground, wiping off some dirt of her clothes. It got her thinking, _what the hell do I wear tonight? _She couldn't spend too much time in front of her closet, as she only had an hour or two left to get ready.

* * *

''Boys, get out of the kitchen! I'm trying to make dinner here.'' Mikoto said as she shooed the boys away from her territory. She had been in the kitchen for two hours in total, as Sasuke had accidently swept away some of the few vegetables on the counter. She made the boys get new ones from her little garden outside where she grew them. As much as she loved both of them, they could be a pain in the ass. Mikoto knew she spoiled them a bit, but that couldn't hurt too much, she thought.

In the dining room, Fugaku sat at the table reading the newspaper. It was kind of a habit, actually. As he sat there, two quite _noisy _boys waltzed in; disturbing his peace. It happened quite a lot since Itachi left the hospital and returned home. It seemed Sasuke had grown worried about his big brother, not that he would actually admit it.

Fugaku hadn't realised this in the first place, thinking they were just being childish. It was actually Mikoto who had pointed it out to him. She thought it was really sweet of Sasuke, being so worried about his _aniki_*. ''Be quiet for a while, will you.'' he said with a low voice, rather than asked.

Then, Fugaku's wife walked in, a bowl of salad in her hands. ''Guys, Sakura will be here any minute now. Can you _please _act normal for a while? I think the whole district has heard you by now.'' Mikoto said with a stern voice before she continued, ''Now, Itachi, help me with the table, please.''

Itachi glanced a look at his younger brother before he walked away to help his mother. ''Why is Sakura coming over again?'' Sasuke asked.

''She's coming over because I invited her,'' Mikoto answered her youngest son. Sasuke looked at her, not having the answer he desired yet. ''It's to thank her for healing Itachi.'' she said eventually, looking at Sasuke with a strict look on her face.

''Isn't that her job?'' he muttered, not really wanting to argue with his mother. Then, someone knocked on the door. Sasuke walked towards it, opening it to see Sakura standing there. She wore an everyday dress, stopping just above her knees. But Sasuke wasn't used to her wearing such clothes and so one word went through Sasuke's head: _pretty_. He stepped aside. ''Come in.''

_What the hell is he acting weird for? _said girl in the dress thought. ''Yeah...'' she mumbled, walking past him. From the cold hall, she walked into the warm dining area where she was greeted by the rest of the family.

''Ah, Sakura. I'm so glad you could make it. You look _beautiful_.'' Mikoto said with a warm smile gracing her face. But the wife of the clan head was a sly woman. She nudged Itachi, who was standing next to her. ''Don't you think so too, Itachi?''

Itachi, in his place, had already expected this. His mother had been looking for a potential wife for him for a while now, at least since he was 16. But every girl his mother introduced him to, he denied. Oh, he tried. All was it just to do his mother a favour. All the girls had either a _really _annoying quirk (like an annoying laugh like a pig), or they just talked too much. You'd think a silent type and a more talkative type would get along great, but it was a _dreadful _date, of that Itachi was sure.

''Yeah, she looks very pretty.'' and that was the actual truth, not trying to just please his mother. Sakura looked really nice, wearing a dress he thought she wasn't really comfortable in. She kept fiddling with its fabric. _Or she's just uncomfortable._

Suddenly, Sakura's cheeks matched colour with her hair. _Pink_. ''Ah, well, thank you.'' She managed to get out. The dress she wore was red and matched quite nicely with her hair. The top was fitted and ended just above her _feminine_ hips. From there on out it parted from her body with just a small puff, but nothing extreme. It fit her well, Itachi thought.

In the meantime that Itachi was dwelling on his thoughts, Fugaku had stepped forward to introduce himself to the young lady. ''Well, let's just get to the dinner Mikoto prepared.'' he grunted, making Itachi snap out of his thoughts. With that, all of them went to sit around the table, Fugaku sitting at the head of the table.

After a while at the dining table, it was still silent. It was an awkward happening, actually. Sakura had no idea what to say; neither did Itachi, Sasuke or Fugaku. Although, she figured the latter never said much anyway. Luckily, there was always Mikoto. ''So, what did you do all day, Sakura?'' she asked with a smile on her face.

''Oh, well, you know. I trained.'' Sakura stammered. _Oh, God_, went through her head. _How am I going to survive this? _She looked up, only to see both of the Uchiha brothers stare at her. Blushing, Sakura looked away.

''Of course! I heard you trained under lady Tsunade, right?'' Mikoto asked.

''Yeah. She's really good at taijutsu, mother.'' Sasuke said in response to his mom. ''Especially with destroying training grounds,'' he added. That made Sakura blush even more. She kicked him under the table.

''Well, it's not _that _bad.'' She muttered, though she knew it actually _was _that bad. Saying you can destroy whole areas is not a very good first impression. Sasuke snorted in response, _yeah, right._

* * *

When Sakura was gone, Mikoto ordered Sasuke to help her with the dishes and Fugaku went back to his newspaper. ''What do you think of Sakura?'' Mikoto asked him when she was done with the dishes. She sat down on the chair beside him.

''She's a nice girl.'' he said, not looking away from his paper. Mikoto rolled her eyes, _typical_.

''Maybe she's something for Itachi, ne? He's twenty-four, after all.'' Mikoto said, ''He should get married and have kids already…'' _I'm glad I sent him out to get Sakura home. Maybe something will grow out of it_, Mikoto thought sneakily.

Outside, it was already dark. Sakura and Itachi were walking side by side; an awkward silence accompanying them. ''My mother seems to like you,'' Itachi said suddenly. He looked sideways at her. Itachi realised then he was a _lot _taller than Sakura. _Cute_.

''Yeah? I hope so.'' she said in response. It was quiet for most of the time; the tension between them only grew more and more. When they _finally _arrived at Sakura's place, she sighed. ''Thank you for taking me home, Itachi.''

''No problem at all, Sakura.'' he said, a polite smile on his face. Then, he turned around and walked away. Sakura walked up the stairs and opened the door.

When she was inside, she closed it behind her and leaned against the door. ''_Oh, my god_.'' she murmured. ''I'm glad that's over.'' The pink-haired kunoichi kicked away her sandals and looked in the mirror. Her cheeks had a pinkish glow on them. _Probably just the cold_, she reminded herself.

Although she knew perfectly well it wasn't just that.

Tomorrow she had to work at the hospital again, but no check-up on Itachi. Not for a week or so. Sakura decided she would just go to bed early and forget about what happened before.

* * *

Itachi closed the door and walked further inside. ''So, how did it go?'' he heard his mother ask from the living room. Itachi mentally sighed; he had expected this, after all.

''What do you mean?'' he tried, though it wouldn't do anything.

''You know perfectly well what I mean!'' Mikoto said when she appeared in the door opening. She had a sly smile on her face.

''I brought her home. That's it, mother.'' He answered with a small laugh. What they didn't know was that Sasuke was listening to their conversation. _Yeah, right_, he thought.

* * *

**A/N: **_aniki_ means big brother. Usually, I don't use these words or honorifics, but I think it's so typical for Sasuke when he's thinking or talking about Itachi. That, and it's just cute.

So, I hope you enjoyed this chapter. I'm so sorry it took so long, though. I struggled a bit with the dinner part. I hope you all had a nice holiday, I know I did! I ordered a new guitar, I'm so excited! Like always, if you notice any mistakes, please tell me! Also, if want you to be up-to-date with my stories, keep me on Author Alert. Also, I published a new fanfic, _Revolution_. It's Sasu/Saku, instead of Ita/Saku. Here's the summary:

_''When an unexpected series of murders befalls a small town, life changes for a certain pink-haired girl. Mysteries take over the city – and most of all, her life. In times like these, it is not smart to make unexpected moves.''_

On a more **important note**, I have a test period coming up in the third week of January. Due to this, I might not be able to update as much. I don't actually feel like studying, but if I don't, I know I'm gonna regret it.


	6. The Mission

**Disclaimer: **I don't own Naruto.

**Summary: **Oh, _love_. It wasn't exactly what Itachi was looking for at age 24, but his mother thought differently. It didn't appear time was on his side, either.

**Additional Notes: **Sorry for the delay! Here's the chapter.

* * *

C6

* * *

Sakura quickly gathered chakra into her hand and punched into the ground, leaving the terrain all destroyed. She took a deep breath, clearing her head. But she didn't have time to catch a break, or even look at the impact her blow.

She turned around, seeing her teammates busy in their own fight. Sakura leaped towards Ino when she decided she could use a little help. Ino was a good fighter herself, but she couldn't use her mind-related jutsu while being surrounded by enemies.

Once again, Sakura gathered chakra into her hand and punched the enemy shinobi in his stomach. But, instead of flying back a few meters, the guy only stepped back. He spit out some blood and the red liquid marred his lips, which now formed a somewhat creepy smile.

''That simply won't do, ladies.'' he muttered. The pink-haired kunoichi already figured that he must've put some chakra into his feet in order to stand a bit steadier. She narrowed her eyes; quickly devising a new strategy.

A good technique would be to make use of her so-called chakra scalpel, but she'd need preparation time: something she didn't have.

She took too long making up a new plan, and the enemy struck. He lashed out with a kunai; barely missing the Sakura. Said kunoichi looked towards Ino, having an idea. Together, they slammed their fists into the enemy-nin.

However, he wasn't prepared for its impact this time, as the two kunoichi had struck together. His body flew meters away, and Sakura smirked.

Both looked towards their two other teammates, seeing they had also finished off their opponents. They were menaced by five enemy-nin, but it was nothing they couldn't handle. This mission was full of surprises, it seemed. They knew there was a high chance of encountering an enemy, but this was the third time already. How the hell did they end up like this, anyway?

* * *

The sun was long gone when a team of shinobi finally took a break. Settling for an open space within the woods, they sat down. A kunoichi on this particular team was Sakura, finally taking a resting after running for a couple of hours straight. She had stamina, alright, but her legs were practically burning.

''Shisui, you keep the first watch. Then Sakura, Ino, and I'll take the last one.'' Itachi said, everyone nodding in agree. Ino wasn't very happy with it, but she was simply too tired to argue.

Sitting down next to Sakura, Ino leaned on her shoulder and closed her eyes. The other girl rolled her eyes.

Two days ago, Sakura was called in by Tsunade for a last-minute mission. It seems a group of Leaf shinobi had stranded somewhere near the Village Hidden by Rain. They were in need of medical nin and so the Hokage had called both Sakura and Ino in to take care of that.

The village accommodated some shady shinobi, though. That's why Tsunade had also called Itachi and Shisui in; they were able to keep them from harm in order for the kunoichi to do their jobs.

A few hours later, Sakura was woken up by Shisui for the next shift. Nothing really happened, though the noises the kunoichi heard were somewhat startling. Sakura just waved it away as some animals, nothing serious. _Hopefully, we'll make it to the Rain Village tomorrow_, Sakura thought as she sighed.

Suddenly, after being lost in her own thoughts for a while, the kunoichi heard a voice a few meters away. Quickly, Sakura rose to her feet; carefully listening to the voices. It seemed they were coming closer fast.

Waking up her teammates one by one, they leaped into hiding; waiting for their enemy to show up.

* * *

''Finally,'' Sakura grumbled. Itachi turned his head towards her, smirking.

After a long run, they had finally found who they were looking for: the injured shinobi. The team of shinobi that had just arrived scanned over the area. The shinobi had hidden themselves in cave of sorts, concealing them from enemies.

''Ino, you take that guy. I'll take this one.'' Sakura said as she knelt down beside a guy who had bandages all over his stomach. It was a poorly done job, though. The kunoichi carefully started taking off the bandages.

A few meters further, Shisui started talking to the remaining, healthy shinobi of the stranded team. ''So, what exactly happened?'' he asked them.

''We don't really know; we were ambushed. Daisetsu and me,'' he pointed to his teammate, ''were able to evade getting closed in. We beat them, eventually, but Shihei and Takuji had some serious wounds.'' He sighed, shame reflecting on his face. ''…Now we're here.''

''Come on, could've happened to everyone.'' Shisui encouraged, hoping to better his mood. It wasn't really helping.

Once Sakura had finished taking off the bandages, she was greeted by a bloody sight. The shinobi's stomach was covered in scars that hadn't healed well because of the obvious lack of medical skill. Sakura was completely focused on the wounds when she heard someone clack their tongue behind her. She looked up; it was Itachi.

''That doesn't look too good. Will you be able to heal it?'' he asked her.

''Yeah, I can.'' she said. She was still a bit… _overwhelmed_ by his closeness after that awkward dinner.

She pushed the memories aside, getting started on the shinobi's wounds. He was unconscious, but still alive. Sakura had already checked; he had a steady heartbeat. Through her palms, chakra flowed: a green glow surrounding her hands.

* * *

In the end, the team they were helping was healed and they had continued their mission.

At first, Sakura deemed it weird that they didn't have a medical-nin with them, so she had asked the team leader about it. He said that they _did _have one on the team: he got wounded, and Sakura had been the one healing him.

So Sakura got mad.

_''What do you mean, _injured_?'' she said scornfully, ''the med-nin is supposed to be the one that heals _you_, not the other way around!'' _

_Ino stood up from her kneeling position; she felt kind of sorry for shinobi her best-friend was yelling to. _She's right, though_, went through her head. ''Come on, Sakura. Give them a break'' she said, laying a hand on Sakura's shoulder._

Sakura laid down to rest as she thought about her scolding from earlier. _They deserved it_, went through her head.

They were finally on their way back. Sakura didn't particularly _want _to go back to everyday-life. She actually enjoyed missions like this. This specific one was a bit of a hassle, though; with all those missing-nin roaming around. But it was nothing she couldn't handle.

The pink-haired kunoichi closed her eyes. _Thank God it's Itachi's turn to keep watch_, she thought, _I don't think I could stay awake for another five minutes._

* * *

Itachi poked around the fire with some branch he had found near where he was seated.

He had already checked around the perimeter; no sign of any shinobi – or villagers for that matter – and now he had decided to just go back.

As the only one awake, he looked around a bit. Shisui lay nearest to him. It always amazed Itachi how he could sleep like that; Shisui lay on his stomach, arms and legs spread wide and drool came out of his mouth.

Then on his other side was Ino, also deeply asleep, but her head was turned away from him. Sakura had taken the watch before him, but she, too, was peacefully asleep now.

She looked really calm; very different from how she looked during the day. She always had this stressed look on her face. Itachi understood it though. His own tiredness and stress showed on his face.

Sakura looked endearing, really. He felt as if he should look away, but he didn't; he was captivated.

* * *

**A/N: **Phew, that took a long time; it's a bit short, too. I struggled a lot with this chapter... I still updated in February, right? _Right?! _Err... never mind. Not much action in this chapter in terms of ItaSaku, though. Sorry for that!

So, my exam period went okay, I guess. I was a little bummed with my performance for the music exam, though. It didn't go so well. The thing is, I was practicing _sadness and sorrow _on my guitar for three weeks straight, but I ended up playing something else because it just wouldn't go the way I wanted.

I hope you enjoyed this chapter! Also, I've gotten a few reviews about my writing and how I could improve it, so I'm really grateful for that! Thank you all so much, everyone who has left a review!


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